Mindless vandals wreak havoc in picturesque Perthshire village

Anyone with information about any of the incidents should contact Police Scotland by calling 101. (Image: Perthshire Advertiser)

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Comrie residents and council officials have hit out at the “mindless vandalism” being wreaked on the village.

In the past few weeks, the gardens at Comrie Primary School have been damaged with vegetables pulled up, apples taken from trees and peas eaten while the nursery sandpit has been wrecked.

Bins and high-visibility jackets have been set on fire in the school playground while in the heart of the village, floral displays by Comrie in Colour have been vandalised.

In the latest incident, an unusual display based near Strowan Road, which features flowers growing out of trainers, was knocked over.

And last month, flower planters were vandalised with their blooms ripped out just days before the arrival of judges for the Beautiful Scotland contest.

Community council chair Sandra McRitchie is urging anyone who knows who might be responsible for the vandalism to contact the police.

She said: “I am appalled at the disrespect being shown in Comrie – it’s just awful and I hope the culprits can be found so they can apologise for their behaviour and understand that it is not acceptable.

“They should be proud of the village and how they are part of a great community, not looking to vandalise it.”

Comrie in Colour chair Muriel Gregory said it was upsetting to the organisation’s volunteers to see their hard work ruined by vandals.

She said: “Luckily the judging for Beautiful Scotland had been done before the latest round of vandalism so it wasn’t as great a concern for us as the previous time.

“But it’s such a shame that people think it’s fun to wreck things and don’t seem to appreciate the amount of effort that goes into keeping the village looking good.

“It’s a shame when your hard work is ruined like this but we won’t give up – we’ll just keep on making sure Comrie looks its best in spite of these vandals.”

A Perth and Kinross Council spokeswoman also condemned the vandalism and urged local residents to call the police if they see anyone acting suspiciously or hanging around school grounds out of hours.

She said: “Perth and Kinross Council condemns the mindless acts of vandalism carried out at Comrie Primary School and Nursery, which has distressed and greatly saddened the pupils, staff and parents.

“During holiday periods each school is checked daily, but it is very difficult to prevent vandalism.

“Because of this we would request the support of local residents in helping to protect schools. We would ask all members of the public who live near schools to call Police Scotland if they see anyone acting suspiciously or entering school grounds out-of- hours. Their help would be greatly appreciated.”

A spokeswoman for Police Scotland said officers are still seeking vandals who set two high-visibility jackets, used by pupils, on fire in the school playground at the end of June.

She said: “There have been concerns with young people hanging about the school grounds and we have been giving the area attention with patrols.”

Anyone with information about any of the incidents should contact Police Scotland by calling 101.